In Every Universe
by Limegreen16
Summary: In another world, they're dancing around each other on tiptoes, and in another, still yet to meet, and in another, already settled down, having figured it our early. B/R. Barney and Robin defy physics and find each other, over and over again.
1. Chapter 1

**I've gotten curious about parallel universes. I'm not sure about the science behind it, but I'm toying around with the idea. Let me know if I should write more! **

In a universe wherein Ted and Barney never meet and become friends—simply because Barney gets lucky early that night with a college student—the gang is never formed. Ted and Robin, Barney and Robin. Neither of those couples, or ex-couples, have existed.

But one of them is about to exist. That is, their chemistry so defies the universes' rules it doesn't matter in what time or space they're in. They collide. In another world, they're dancing around each other on tiptoes, and in another, still yet to meet, and in another, already settled, having figured it our early.

And this is how it happens.

Barney Stinson has had his eye on the gorgeous brunette by the bar all night. And, normally, he'd have already made a move. Except this girl, well, she's pretty damn unreadable. She was with a friend who left about an hour ago, leaving her open for guys like him. Two already came up to her, and left empty-handed. She's drinking scotch. In a sexy black dress. All alone.

Barney swallows his drink and walks over to her, whispers something into her ear.

'Really? SNASA?'

She laughs.

'Oh yeah. It's all top secret. We report directly to the President. I'm thinking you'll make a great astronaut. We need women like you—we're shooting some photos on the smoon, you see.'

'Wow.' She's shaking her head, and he's smirking, his hand on her thigh. She leans forward. 'You are so. . .sad, you know that?'

'What?'

'Do women actually fall for crap like that?'

He's taken aback, honestly. Steps back, as if looking her over again.

'I'm guessing that's a yes.'

'Who _are_ you?'

'Robin Scherbatsky.'

'Sorry. I'm just not used to this. Must be an off night for me.'

He is expecting her to slap him or spill a drink in his face any second now, but she just seems amused by this. Like it doesn't matter all that much. He sits next to her and orders two drinks, intrigued by this woman who isn't like any other he's ever met before.

'Mind if I stay?'

'Don't you have to move on to new prey now?' she retorts.

'How do you know I'm not just changing tactics with you?'

'Fair enough.'

He motions to her drink. 'You like scotch?'

'My dad did,' she explains, her smile waning.

There, familiar teritory—daddy issues! Barney smiles.

'Yeah? I'm a scotch man myself.'

XXX

They end up at her place. It's furious, passionate and she's unsurprisingly, unflinchingly certain about what to do. He finds that he's floored by this girl. Robin. As he lies next to her, the clock on her wall reading 3:45 am, he's torn between staying the night and escaping through her window. He doesn't want to leave. He feels a strange connection to her, something unexpected, intimate, as if here is a person he has been waiting to meet his entire life. But he has never done this before, stay the night at a girl's bed. It's his only rule that he has so far never found the need to break.

What the hell.

Barney closes his eyes, letting himself drift off, unguarded, wearing only boxers, utterly vulnerable in an alien environment. It feels okay, he thinks, as he slips into sleep.

XXX

He wakes up feeling content. It's weird. She's in the shower and when she gets out, hurries around changing and putting on her make-up while he's there on the bed just waiting.

'Hello?'

'I'm sorry, last night was awesome, but I'm running late for work. Really. I'm new at my job and I really can't afford it.'

He wonders if he should be hurt right now, but she seems sincere enough. Barney puts his clothes on, and they're standing, two inches apart, he kisses her, he smiles, she smiles and he grabs her phone, punches in his number quickly.

'Barney Stinson. Call me, alright? I'd—I'd like to see you again.'

She has a sly smile on.

'You will call, right? I mean you don't have to, you know—whatever—'

'You haven't done this before have you.'

'No, I haven't.'

XXX

She tells him she's bad at this stuff too, relationship stuff, and he's glad because he doesn't have to live up to any grand expectation she has in her head.

For months, the official label is friends. What's up with you and that girl, Robin? What's with tall, blonde and blue-eyed? What's going on?

'We're just friends,' they'd say.

They leave out the sleeping together part conveniently.

He keeps expecting himself to wake up one morning and kick himself in the nuts for what he's doing, basically attaching himself to this one girl, no matter how awesome she is. It's crazy, isn't? They never talk about seeing other people, but all he does is flirt now. Nothing else. And he's pretty sure she's not dating anyone else too—considering they spend almost every waking hour together, she doesn't have the time.

One day, she asks if he wants to go up with her to Canada for her cousin's wedding. Warning signs flash in his head until he says yes, of course, then throws out some Canadian joke to make her laugh.

He's surprised by the stiffness of her old home. It's masculine, cold and stuffy, but when he meets her father he begins to understand. He doesn't try to hide at all his disappointment in Robin, which angers Barney, but he sucks it in and tries to be nice to this old, delusional crackhead.

'Nice guy,' he says later on. Robin's kneeling on the floor, unpacking. She doesn't look up.

'Now you see why I hate going back here. It's like I devolve to being a teenager again around him.'

He sits down on her bed, 'Well, my dad left when I was six. So I guess all fathers must be dysfunctional.'

She turns around and sits on the floor. He has never told her about any of this.

'He never called or sent any cards after that. My mom never talked about it. I just. . .One morning, I hired a PI to look into it, and I found out my "uncle" was actually my dad. He's married now. Two kids.'

She goes over to where he's sitting on her childhood bed and puts an arm around him.

'We're messed up,' she concedes. 'But you know the best thing about this weekend?'

'All the hot girls at the wedding?'

'No.' She pushes him away. 'Idiot. My dad's scotch collection. We can drink all we can, and he'd get what he deserves. He probably won't even notice though.'

So the next day, after the cheesy wedding they spend rolling their eyes and laughing at the corniness of it all, they slip back into the house and grab a couple of bottles, lock themselves up in her room and turn on the music. They drink from the bottle. Like teenagers high on hormones, they jump on the bed and sing out loud, until they end up kissing, taking their clothes off, and they haven't done this in a while (mainly because they've both been hesitating lately), but it feels right in every single way.

And when they're finished and looking up at the ceiling (not cuddling, of course, because they both hate it) he says the most important words to ever come out of his mouth.

'Robin? I could do this forever.'

'Have sex? God, Barney.'

'No, this. Be with you.' He swallows hard. She seems to be thinking too, and the room is silent. It's dark out.

'Me too.'

'Not too cheesy?'

'We're drunk. You're forgiven.'

'And while we're drunk, let me say something else.' He focuses on the ceiling. 'You are the most awesome woman I've ever met, you love scotch, you can hold a gun. And yeah, you're screwed up with daddy issues. You're Canadian. Sometimes I think I might run away, but. . . I don't think I could function properly without your awesome complementing mine.'

She twists herself so her body is facing him, and he reaches for another bottle of alcohol and takes a swig, handing it to her afterwards.

Robin puts a hand on his chest and then kisses him. Her eyes, to him, look clear and focused, not at all clouded with alcohol.

'You're an idiot,' she tells him, smiling, shaking her head softly. And then she smacks him lightly, before falling back into bed.

And so in this way, Barney Stinson and Robin Scherbatsky defy fate and physics by finding each other in a world with seven billion people and infinite universes. They live happily ever after, as traditional a relationship either could handle, that is.

In this universe anyway.

**Should I decided to write a next chapter, I'm thinking that the next universe will be drastically different. Maybe a married Barney and Robin with kids or whatever. :) please review!**


	2. Chapter 2

One tiny detail causes a split between this world and the other, in which Ted spots Robin across the room and falls in love.

Robin Scherbatsky, for the first time in her life, gets a cold. And in catching the common cold this particular week, she opts to go straight home after work instead of hanging out with coworkers at some bar. MacLaren's.

She blames pollution. But really, it's only physics.

XXX

Two years later—

Her sister, Katie, has just moved in with her from Canada. Katie was accepted at NYU and Robin's suggested she live with her while still adjusting to a new city.

One Saturday, just as Robin is all dressed up to go out with some friends, Katie bursts in the apartment, her eyes red, her expression shaky. The dogs instincively follow her until she slams the her bedroom door, nearly sending them across the hall.

'Katie?' She knocks patiently. 'What's wrong? Open the door.'

'I'm fine!'

'Katie, I have a sledgehammer and I'm not afraid to use it.'

The door swings open. Katie goes back to the bed, hugging a pillow, as Robin follows.

'It was Aaron, wasn't it?' she asks, referring to the douchebag Katie's currently dating who smells like pot and cheap cologne. 'I'm going to pound that kid.'

She frowns. 'No. It's. . .I saw some posters around the area of this _director_, you know, looking for models. So I was like, why not, right? The auditions were held awhile ago. I went there, and the director. . .he, um, well, he told me to take my clothes off and pretend to model. So I did. I took my shirt and pants off. When he started flirting with me, I got really uncomfortable and ran out.'

Robin goes numb. She freaks out and starts cursing, then heads out to find a gun with Katie, panicking behind her.

'What's this "director" called?

'I don't know. Don't overreact! I mean, nothing really happened.'

'Where were the auditions?'

'Robin!'

'Katie, it's either you tell me or I call mom. Right now.'

So Katie scribbles the address quickly and Robin leaves, swearing every step of the way.

XXX

Burning with rage, she enters the "audition room" after a couple of other bimbos come out giggling. She rolls her eyes. Idiots.

She plasters a smile on her face and manages to hide her surprise. Because the so called director isn't what she expected—he isn't old, overweight, oozing with sleeziness or even remotely disgusting-looking. He's young, dressed impeccably, cool and—Robin hates to admit it—the kind of guy she'd consider if he ever came up to her.

'Name?' he asks, sizing her up.

'Robin Scherbatsky.'

'Age?'

'Twenty six.'

He seems to consider this for awhile, then shrugs and scribbles something down on his clipboard. While he does, she slips onto the couch next to and puts a hand on his arm.

'Come on. We all know what this is about,' she whispers.

And then they're kissing (is it supposed to feel this electric? she thinks, chalking it up to the adrenaline from being angry), and she slips her hand into his suit pocket and takes his wallet out, dropping it into her bag carefully. She pulls back suddenly and leaves him hanging.

'Is there a bathroom here?'

He points at a small room to the right of the dark, poorly lit room. 'I'll be here when you get back,' he reminds her with a wink.

He manages to surprise her once again: his wallet is full of cash and credit cards. A guy as well-off and good-looking as him, why the need to lie? There's no driver's license, but there's a strange letter with instructions in case his body is found in a desert, signed 'Barney Stinson'. Robin smiles, satisfied, and doesn't even bother putting the wallet back into her bag.

'What the hell—' _Barney_ starts, seeing her emerge from the hallway.

'Okay, listen, Barney Stinson.' She waves his wallet. 'You almost took advantage of my seventeen year old sister today. And unless you want to end up in jail for sexual harassment, at the very least, you're going to shut up, keep your hands to yourself and do as I say.'

He holds his hands up. 'Is this a game? Am I being punk'd—'

'I said shut up, didn't I? Now, go outside and tell those women auditions are over.'

Barney reluctantly does as told and gets back into the room.

'There were Chinese twins out there,' he mumbles.

Robin looks around the room, wrinkling her nose. 'You're going to apologize to my sister. Is there anywhere, I don't know, decent around this area?'

'There's a bar across the street.'

'Okay then.'

He moves to grab his wallet back, but she's too quick and he trips with the effort. She suppresses a laugh.

Texting Katie the address, she steps on his foot with her heel, making him yell. 'That's for my sister, jerk.'

They get to the bar—she's been here once or twice, she thinks, on a date—and Barney waves at a group of three people before moving to sit with them (she just stands there awkwardly). He's still frowning and suddenly she wonders if telling Katie to come to a bar and meet her almost sexual assaulter is a good decision.

Shooting him would be so much easier.

'This is Ronnie—'

'Robin,' she corrects him.

'Robin. She's making me wait and apologize to her sister for holding fake auditions to screen women. And she has my name.'

Robin is surprised at how normal his tone is, how frank he is with his friends.

'When are you going to learn, Barney?' one of the guys ask exasperatedly. He has black hair that looks meticulously geled to look messy.

'Nice one, Robin,' a tall, clean-shaven guy tells her, grinning. He raises his hand and Robin high-fives it a little uncertainly. 'I'm Marshall, by the way. This is Lily, my wife. And that's Ted.'

Lily smiles and waves at her, a petite, red-head. Robin decides they aren't too bad and sits down with them.

'So why are you all friends with Barney?' she asks. 'I mean, no offense, but he's a sleeze.'

Lily snorts. 'You can call him much worse.'

'Lily!' Barney groans. 'You're supposed to be on my side, not hers.'

When Katie gets there, Barney starts looking like he's about to run. That is, until Marshall threatens to slap him.

'I'm sorry I lied to you. And hit on you. But in my defense, you lied about your age. Ow!' Robin had punched him. 'But I am really sorry if I hurt you or anything. I shouldn't have done it. If I could take it back, I would.'

She is, again, surprised by how sincere he sounds and looks (and so does Katie, it appears).

'I shouldn't have lied about being seventeen,' Katie relents, smiling weakly. The rest of the guys then proceed to cheer her up with embarassing stories of Barney, going on endlessly until Katie is laughing and looking much better. Robin goes to the bar to order some drinks, proud of how she handled the situation.

Suddenly, Barney appears from behind and eyes her order. 'Soda? Really?'

'I'm trying to be a good example.'

'Right.'

She pulls a twenty from his wallet before placing it back in his pocket. 'Thanks for paying.'

He looks like he has something else to say, but she doesn't wait, walks back to the table where Marshall is doing some funny impressions. They stay for about half an hour more until Robin decides it's time to leave.

XXX

She bumps into him again about two weeks later at a coworker's birthday party. He excuses himself from a girl he seems to be hitting on and crosses the room to meet her.

'How's your sister?' he asks.

'She started school a couple of days ago at NYU.'

'Awesome.'

'Why am I even talking to you?' She laughs. 'You know how weird this is? You almost assulted my little sister!'

'She lied about her age!'

'Well, still, it was a disgusting thing to do. Bye, Barney.'

He catches her arm in a hurry. 'Look, I'm sorry, all right? I feel bad about it—'

'Do you, really? Because I'm thinking you do it all the time.'

'I hate that you think I'm just that kind of guy.'

'Why does it matter?'

' Let's go someplace. I'll prove to you that I'm not just a womanizing idiot.'

And for some unknown reason, Robin complies. They get a cab and he leads them to a laser tag arena, where they suit up and are beaten by a group of noisy kids twenty minutes into the game. So they play another and this time, they win. She won't admit how much fun she's having. He redeems a giant stuffed penguin for her with his tickets and buys them some onion rings and soda, which they eat as they walk along the streets in endless conversation.

It turns out that they have a million things in common, which surprises her because of the rarity of finding someone who understands how she thinks. She has known this guy two weeks and already it feels like they're old friends. They throw insults at each other at lightning speed, complimenting each other for particularly witty ones. When it starts to rain and cabs can't be bothered to stop for them, he calls some guy named Ranjit and two minutes later they're in a car going to get a drink at Maclaren's.

At about two in the morning, she insists Katie might be worried about her. He relents and they get back into the car.

'I hate to say it, but I had fun,' Robin tells him at her doorstep. 'You're _almost _forgiven.'

'I can do with that for now.'

'So, thanks.'

'Friends?' He reaches a hand out. They're soaking under the rain and it's dark, she smiles and shakes his hand.

'I really am sorry for what I did.'

'I believe you now. Don't make me regret that.'

Their hands linger for longer than a handshake should last. For a second there, they're leaning in, and Robin can almost conjure the feeling of kissing him the first time. Until she remembers Katie might be watching and pulls back.

'You have to stop doing that to me, Scherbatsky,' he says, shaking his head.

She smiles, walks up the steps with her soaked penguin and opens the door. 'You need to earn it first,' she replies loudly against the fierce rain.

He stands there and grins back. 'Challenge accepted!'

It isn't the smoothest start. Certainly, it isn't ideal. But it doesn't matter because yes, in some universes, it takes Barney and Robin just a little bit more time and complications to find each other and fall in love.

The important thing is that, in the end, they always do. Whatever happens. They do.

**What universe should the next chapter be about? Please review and suggest! :) **


	3. Chapter 3

One could say that the Barney Stinson in this universe is a lucky guy.

Instead of taking him to the Museum of Natural History as promised, Jerome backtracks all of a sudden and takes him to the zoo. The blue T-rex is left standing in peace. And Barney gets a childhood much more complete than his other selves are having in other worlds—he has a father.

When he turns sixteen, Loretta finally caves and lets him join cross-country tours with Jerome and the bands he manage, on the condition that he call or write to her every week. Dutiful son that he is, he complies unfailingly.

Being on tour is a dream come true. They eat in diners, jam on the bus, show off magic tricks (in the Stinsons' case), he gets to watch acts ranging from horrible to mediocre and meet all kinds of girls. And he doesn't even need to committ to any of them.

On the fourth year he joins in, Jerome suddenly announces that they are heading to Canada. Of all places!

'There's a rising demand to American music there,' he explains.

And so they cross the border into Canada.

XXX

The show has just finished. There were a couple of bizzare acts that went before and after the band, others that were good and still others that were memorable enough. Barney is seated backstage waiting for Jerome to wrap up his talk with some producers, practicing his card tricks. Not that he needs too. He's already awesome at all of them.

But then he hears a faint sound, sort of like the kind of sniffling accompanied by a girl crying. Barney freezes and listens carefully. Curiously, he gets up to trace where the sound is coming from. He finds himself deeper backstage, walking towards a small room where the sound seems to be coming from.

The girl is on the floor hugging her knees. He recognizes her, or rather, her outfit. Her layers of denim, blindingly colorful accessories and overdone, curly, hairsprayed hair. Onstage, she burst with energy and reminded him of the cheesy eightees, and 'Let's Go to the Mall' is still stuck in his head.

He clears his throat at the doorway. 'Um, hey. Good show back there.'

She raises her head, eyes puffy, nose pink. With the back of her hand, she wipes the tears away from her eyes.

'Thanks.'

'I'm Barney. My dad manages The Haters.'

'Oh. I'm Robin.'

'I know.'

And then her lip is quivering and she starts crying again. During his twenty years of existence, Barney Stinson has learned a lot of tricks, but one he can't seem to master is what to do when a girl starts crying. Panicking, he comes in and sits down on the floor next to her.

'What's wrong?'

She gives off a sound which is a cross between a laugh and a cry. 'My boyfriend broke up with me. Just now. He's a bass player in the other band, The Foreskins.'

'I bet he's an idiot.' He thinks her accent is adorable.

'What makes you say that?'

'Well, for starters, you're cute.' He grins, relaxing as Robin smiles too. 'Your song's way too catchy. And what kind of name is The Foreskins? Seriously. He kept missing notes too. So yeah, I'm pretty sure you win this one, Sparkles.'

'I guess.'

He holds out his deck of cards. 'Want to see a magic trick? Here. Pick a card. Don't show it to me. Now, remember what it is in case it shows up again, much later.'

'Okay.' She puts it back on top. 'So, Barney, right?'

'Barney Stinson. Proud American.'

'How old are you, eh?'

'Twenty.'

'Sixteen.'

'Shouldn't you be in school?'

'I have a tutor. Shouldn't you be in college?'

'Summer break.'

'But that's only a week!'

He just stares at her, puzzled, then shrugs. 'So how long will you be performing here? My dad's band stays put for three more days.'

'I'm leaving tonight, actually.'

'That's too bad.' He pauses, glancing at her, wondering if she will start crying again. Please don't, he thinks. 'So, this boyfriend of yours—is he still around?'

'I think he's with his band out back. Why?'

He stands and pulls her up. 'Come on. I'll show you another trick.'

Simon and his bandmates are out by their van loading some equipment and drinking beer. Pressing a finger against his lips, Barney leaves Robin hidden behind a wall and sneaks up closer to the van. While the band moves to the back to check that their equipment is complete, he crouches low and approaches the front and, with his magical hands, sets one of their banners lying on the ground on fire. Then he runs quickly back to safety.

'How did you do that?' she asks in amazement.

He winks. 'A magician never reveals his secrets.'

And they watch as Simon accidentally steps over the burning cloth, lighting his pants on fire too. His bandmates rush forward in panic, yelling, as Simon drops and rolls on the ground frantically. They pour bottles of water over the fire, cursing and blaming and shoving each other. It's hilarious.

'He screams like a girl,' Barney tells her, glancing sideways. She's barely holding a laugh back.

Later on back in her dressing room, they play Battleship with a set she brings with her wherever she travels. They each win a game (he has never met a girl who could play as well as him, who could foil all his practiced cheats so easily). They are about to play a tiebreaker game when he hears Jerome calling him. Hesitantly, he gets up.

'My dad's calling me,' he says apologetically. 'It was nice meeting you.'

'Thanks. For what you did.' She looks up at him, a wide smile on her face.

'No problem.'

He stands there wondering if they will ever meet again. But he remembers he is twenty, and she is sixteen, still a kid, and while he has dated women younger and older than him, this one just feels different. _Sixteen_. He feels a protective streak coming out, assuring himself it would only freak her out if he asked for her number or address. And besides—she lives in a completely different country. Nothing would come out of it.

'Hey, Robin.'

'Yeah?'

'After I leave, check your purse. The pink one there.'

'Why?'

'You'll see.'

'It won't burst into flames, will it?'

He catches the glint in her eye and grins. 'Maybe. Just look, okay?'

'I will.'

Then he walks away, every step deliberate and slow. And he doesn't know why, but he feels like he is losing her even though they've only just met.

XXX

Eight years later, she is having coffee and catching up on some reading for work when a barista puts a hot drink down on her table.

'I didn't order that,' she insists.

The barista smiles. 'It's paid for. The gentleman over there only wants your autograph in return.'

She is dumbfounded. 'My autograph?'

Robin stands up and approaches the guy the barista pointed at. 'Um, excuse me—'

When he turns around, it takes her a about a second to recognize who he is. Barney Stinson. His blonde hair, once a bit long and curly, is now cut short and professionally. He's wearing an expensive-looking suit and a bemused, knowing expression, and she smiles, remembering what he did for her all those years ago.

'You should know my autograph's pretty worthless now,' she tells him.

'I'm still a huge fan. It's not worthless to me.'

'Well, then you're one of the few still existing.'

'Why'd you quit?'

'Second single bummed.'

'Sandcastles in the Sand? Really? I thought it was, you know, funny.'

'Funny, in a lame, trying-too hard way maybe.' She shakes her head. 'Wait, how'd you know about Sandcastles in the Sand? It was only released after we met.'

He seems a little embarassed, but quickly recovers his composure. 'I came across it on the internet. Some guy posted the music video of it.'

'Oh, god. . .My humiliation is public and global now.'

'It wasn't that bad.'

She stares at him.

'Okay, maybe it was kind of that bad. But look at you now, right? No more accent, no more blonde frizzy stuff all over, no more eighties clothes. You look awesome.'

'So do you,' she says, fingering his lapels. 'The suit suits you.'

'Oh, I know.'

She shakes her head, masking a smile with a roll of the eyes.

They spend the rest of the late afternoon talking. She tells him about finding a jack of hearts in her purse after he left, about Simon coming back a few days later to apologize and get back together ('I said he could go to hell') and coming to the States a few years back. In turn, he tells her about his dive into the corporate world as opposed to travelling and playing the violin like he once said he wanted to do. There's a wistfulness in his tone she can relate to.

Her lost childhood, his put-away dreams.

So much has changed, she thinks. Somewhere along the way, the giddy, gullible and ultra-girly teenager grew up. Put away the performing, the lights, the singing and did the one thing she always wanted to but never thought she could—leave home.

She can hardly believe she and Robin Sparkles are the same people, that Barney even recognized her in the first place.

Her phone rings, just as he is returning from the men's room. Work is calling. And now it is her turn to leave.

She stands, he starts.

'It's work. I have to go.'

'Oh.' She tries not to think about his disappointed tone.

'Yeah. Thanks for the coffee.'

'I still don't have your autograph.'

She laughs. 'How could I forget? My biggest fan.' She takes out a pen and signs her name on a napkin.

'You could also put your number down.'

'I thought you'd never ask, Stinson.'

And he does call, three days later while she is in the shower. She jumps out, shampoo still in her hair, dogs crowding around her wet legs, to say yes when he asks her out to dinner.

**Please review! I appreciated all those who took time to comment and hash out ideas. I'll definitely follow up on those :) **


	4. Chapter 4

They're all positive.

Mechanically, Robin wraps all three tests in toilet paper, throws the package in the trash and makes sure it's well concealed. She washes her hands. Leaves the apartment for work, numbly takes the subway to the office and, half an hour later, finds herself taking the elevator up. She tries not to think about the panic creeping up on her.

That night, as she consumes two pints of cookie dough ice cream, Robin feels an overwhelming desire to do _something_. She wants to cry, go to the shooting range, rant to someone. But who does she have? She can't tell Kevin, because he isn't the father. She can't call Barney (and there's an entire list of reasons why).

_She chose Kevin over him. _

_She doesn't know what to say._

_She's pretty sure he'll never talk to her again, and it scares her, how much she's messed up with him._

_He's the father. _

_He doesn't want kids. _

XXX

Except, he lets her know now, he does want kids. Sort of.

'We'll be okay,' he says, glancing down at her tummy, allowing himself a smile.

'How can you be so calm?'

'Why?'

'I don't know, because we're having a baby? Do you know what that even means? Barney, we will be responsible for a living, breathing person, when the fact is, we don't even know what the right thing is sometimes. We choose the wrong things and we—we screw up. I screw up. I can't tell what's right from wrong anymore. I don't know what this is.'

'Are you talking about Kevin?' he asks quietly. His eyes are steady, looking at her. This is the first time they've acknowledged that night. Robin looks away and stands up, hands on her hips.

'I'm seeing the doctor tomorrow to confirm the news.'

He doesn't try to chase the subject, and she's grateful (because the truth is, they both know the answer to his question).

'I'll come with you,' he says, which is exactly what she'd been hoping to hear.

XXX

Barney is sitting next to her, as silent as she is. She knows they are both contemplating what this could mean for them, for their careers and lifestyle and relationship. So far, this mind-blowing new development is entirely their secret.

'Robin Scherbatsky,' the nurse calls out.

She stands slowly and so does Barney. It's just a simple blood test, really, but before they enter the testing center, he tugs at her wrist gently.

'Robin.'

'Yeah?'

'Whatever happens, pregnant or not, I want you to know I'm here for you.'

And she melts all over again, but Robin catches herself and nods, forcing herself to focus on being potentially pregnant. She can't remember what she was thinking the night she chose to stay with Kevin—something on the lines of him, objectively, being a better choice.

_Kevin is responsible, sweet, adoring and affectionate. _

It's been her mantra as of late, she thinks.

But maybe it was that she felt scared about using her heart instead of her head (remembering the Don disaster) and backtracked. Without a thought, she would have picked Barney—Robin overcompensated for her bias. And now, they're all paying for it.

They take some blood from her, leaving a tiny puncture mark covered by a bandaid. Simple as that. The nurse tells her they will send her the results the next day, and Robin scribbles Barney's address to make sure Ted doesn't mistakenly receive the envelope.

'You okay?' he asks when she gets out.

She almost laughs, but she can't muster the energy for it. 'It was just a blood test, Barney.'

They grab lunch in a restaurant near the hospital, knowing nobody they know is even remotely close. It almost feels like normal again, the way he tries to lift the mood by chatting about work, retelling how Ted tried to adopt a baby with him and showing her some new magic tricks. She actually laughs. It's been so long since that's happened. For once, she doesn't think about anything that lies beyond the scope of the moment.

Right now, there's Barney, her, and maybe even their baby. And that's enough for the now.

XXX

Barney is sitting down on his couch with a brown envelope in his hand. He's a nervous wreck. Robin is due to arrive any second now to open the envelope with him.

Without her around, he doesn't have to pretend to be unfazed. Yes, he doesn't think it's such a terrible thing anymore. He kind of even wants to be a dad. But she's right; they wouldn't even know what to do. They're messed up. How can they raise a child together? He drinks some scotch to calm his nerves when the doorbell rings.

'Um, hey. Come in.'

They sit on the couch quietly. He wants to say they've been filled with so much silence lately, with what's happened.

'Ready?' she asks.

He gulps, nodding.

She rips it open nicely, pulls out the sheet of paper and scans it.

_Positive._

They look at each other, overwhelmed. All his anxiety melts away, giving way to joy and excitement. He grins and hugs her tightly, forgetting that she isn't his and that it was her choice not to be. He imagines a new start for them, all three of them, they'll do things right this time, he'll be better to her—

'Why don't you hate me?' she asks. It's only then he realizes she's crying.

He is almost amused to think that, after all this time, she still doesn't get it. Barney is reminded of the night they first slept together, comforting her at the bar when stupid Simon broke up with her. Ridiculous to think that guy ever had anything on her.

'You know why,' he says softly.

'Even after what I did to you—'

'Robin, we both messed up the first time. I was a terrible boyfriend and ex-boyfriend. We've both done stuff to each other we'd rather forget, but it doesn't mean I hate you. I don't think I'm capable of that.'

He has never seen her more vulnerable, more broken then he has now. Not knowing what else to do, he wraps his arm around her; she leans in, fitting her head against the crook between his shoulder and head.

And it doesn't surprise him at all, never did, how well they fit together.

'I'm breaking up with Kevin tomorrow,' she mumbles.

They fall asleep on the couch, lying down, perfectly comfortable against each other.

XXX

The next day, Robin calls Kevin to meet her at the bar. He smiles when he sees her, says he's been a bit worried about her lately and kisses her.

But Robin gathers herself up and starts, before he says anything else.

'Kevin, remember the other night, at the hospital? When I said I had something to say?'

'Yeah. And we both decided I didn't have to hear it.'

'But you do.'

'Okay.'

'I was going to break up with you.'

He stops, frowning, opening his mouth to say something before closing it back. 'And now, you're breaking up with me?'

'You're a good guy, Kevin. I wish I didn't have to.'

'So why are you?'

'I think you know why, Kevin.' She feels sorry, truly. 'The same reason why I was sent to you in the first place. It's not fair to anyone, what we're doing.'

'Barney? He was with Nora and they just broke—' She sees the realization strike him.

She nods. 'There's more. I slept with him the night before. I—it just happened. And. . .I'm pregnant.'

'Holy shit. Why are you telling me all this?'

'Because you deserve the truth.'

'I think I need to rethink my career choice.'

'Kevin, I'm so sorry.'

'I should have known better. I mean, I did, but I thought you'd get over him.'

She wants to say 'Me too'. But she doesn't, just kisses him on the cheek after apologizing again and heads up to the apartment. The guilt is still gnawing at her, but it's better now, she thinks.

She calls Barney at work after resisting for half an hour.

'Barney Stinson.'

'I did it,' she tells him, and she can almost hear his restraint through the line.

'I'm sorry.'

She knows he's not.

'Hey, come over later, okay? There are stuff I want to show you,' he tells her. 'Around eight?'

'I'll be there.'

She gets there half past eight, bearing ice cream, some butterscotch and Chinese take-out, familiar as she is with his always-empty fridge.

He has his suit jacket off, sleeves rolled up. He grins and lets her in, showing her a bottle of sparkling grape juice he bought earlier that day. Next to his coffee table are a stack of pregnancy books, a book of baby names and some baby fasion catalogues.

'You think it's too early to order a crib? Handcrafted, with an engraving of SS?' he asks, handing her a design magazine.

'SS?'

'Scherbatsky-Stinson!'

'Right.' She smiles, picking up the top book. Baby names. There are already bookmarks inserted throughout. 'Uh, no to Alice. That's, like, a stripper name.'

'Alice—are you serious? That is _not_ a stripper name.'

'And Lionel, really? That's like the most pretentious name ever.'

He grabs the book from her and flips through it. 'Anakin?'

'Over my dead body.'

'Luke?'

'No Star Wars.'

'Fine, no weird Canadian names then.'

She raises her eyebrows. 'Um, I don't know what you're talking about, we have normal names.'

He waves it off. 'Fine. Whatever. We have nine months to decide.'

'Yeah.' Her lips twist into a smile. For the first time, she feels as if it could all work out, her and Barney and this baby they're having together. They could be happy. 'We do,' she says, and they sit down on the couch together and turn his tv on.

She decides to surprise them both for a change. Robin finds Barney's hand and squeezes it, a silent acknowledgement of whatever this new thing is, of her gratitude and apology. They don't need to look at each othet to know that.

Sixteen years later, her kids will sit on that couch as she tells them the story of how they came to be. The boy, their first-born, will be blonde and wearing a suit. The girl will be the spitting image of her. And Barney will be right there with her, interrepting her story to slip a tiny, exaggerated detail or two or sneaking a kiss every now and then.

**This week's episode was crushing. And, I just sort of imagined a happier ending for our favorite duo. I really hope they still get back together someday. For now, please review! :)**


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